More Snow On The Way In Nw Indiana

As much as 20 inches of new snow could fall today in parts of northwest Indiana before the storm moves east tonight, making travel in the region treacherous, according to afternoon weather reports.

Meanwhile, at Chicago-area airports, airlines were still in "recovery mode" from Tuesday's massive snowstorm along the East Coast, said Department of Aviation spokeswoman Monique Bond.

Bond said activity at O'Hare International Airport was starting to "pick up," though there were some cancellations and sporadic delays for East Coast-bound flights. Bond said the airlines should return to normal flight schedules by Thursday morning.

In Indiana, some areas between Gary and South Bend were blanketed by as much as a foot of lake effect snow overnight, and the downfall has not let up. La Porte, Ind., was hit the hardest, receiving 14 inches of snow from Tuesday morning through this morning, according to Bill Nelson, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service.

Chesterton, in the northeast part of Porter County, reported 10.9 inches of new snow and the Indiana Dunes saw 5.5 inches.

But just to the west, Crown Point in Lake County, Ind., had only a half inch, Nelson said.

It's hard to pinpoint who's going to get how much," Nelson said, noting it depends on the snow bands. "It looked like it was progressing pretty good (to the west) ... but now it's pretty much due north and south. So it's really touch to say who's going to get it."

The snowstorm was caused by northerly winds, screaming down Lake Michigan. The cold air, mixed with the warmer water temperatures, created the lake effect storm, Nelson said.

The winds are wrapping around a high-pressure system, Nelson said. As that system moves east, its clockwise winds will shift to the northeast and then east, pushing the snow belt westward he said. That could bring between 2 to 4 inches of snow to Chicago and its southern suburbs later today and tonight, Nelson said.

The good news is the winds will eventually switch to the south, bringing relatively warmer weather this weekend. Nelson predicted that temperature could climb into the lower 30s by Sunday.